When I was a kid we always just used the log with a couple spikes in it and a hatchet, a 55 gallon drum of boiling water and parafin. After plucking retire to the shed for gutting and wrapping for the freezer and the year.

I may have to see this other way once.

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Everyone said it couldn't be done. But he with a chuckle replied, "I won't be one to say it is so, until I give it a try." So he buckled right in with a trace of a grin. If he had a worry he hid it and he started to sing as he tackled that thing that couldn't be done, and he did it. (unknown)

we quit doing this but I used to ax their heads off on a stump with 2 nails in it that i put their head on one side and then stretched their necks out. They were in a killing cone. I would then hang the killing cone for them to bleed out. Then my wife would clean them and skin them at an outside sink I set up for that purpose. When she finished they went into a plastic freezer bag and into the freezer. we quit after a year that we had a batch of chicks that had some kind of disease and they never developed properly.

if you wanted to do this on a larger scale there is a ready market for locally raised free range broilers.

Never updated this storyline but i have some time so..wanna hear it here it go: My freezer is now packed with very delicious birds some of which are bigger thatn some turkeys i've eaten. The hybrids turned out fine after i reduced their feed to the same that i feed the layers(that's a 16% protien) yes low but it slowed down their rapid growth and i ended up with none of the heart,leg or breast problems. After the feed switch they became normal chickens, i even wanted to touch them! They roamed the grass and ate bugs and plumped nicely. Killed some at 8 weeks and the rest at 10 due to time constraints rather than choice. One of the roosters weighed 8 lbs. some were a little bigger but did not weigh them. This is how i kill chickens:Buy a road cone from the hardware store and cut off the end-the cones are rubber and bend with the bird so you don't get bruising on the wings during the death throws.Gather a bird from the containment pen where they have been overnight with only water(need hydration to make skin supple but no food so waste does not contaminate) and put it upsiade down into the cone-we have the cone nailed to the edge of an old picnic table with a bucket underneath for draining(we save and compost the blood). I slit the side of the birds neck just below the jaw-just the one side-this is a slow bleed method along the Kosher lines and works for me as i am not the worlds fastest plucker. I have a propane BBQ with a side burner-this is great for keeping a big pot up to heat for scalding. I cannot give specifics on temps just keep the water hot but not boiling-if there are tiny bubbles along edges of pot you are good to go. I use a huge steel pot from the mexican market that i use to make loads of tamales during x-mas. The pot you use has to comfortable fit the birds! When the bird is done draining i remove the head and then scald in the pot for twenty sec. The bird can then be plucked and the feathers almost wipe off they come off so easy. I read a study somewhere that said that birds hand plucked are 20% more tender than mechanical plucking and it seems true to me. I then cut off the feet and take them inside to cool in a tub of ice water before dressing-i find that the innerds are easier to remove when cool.Well there it is. Hope this helps some although i have found that everyone has their own way that they are comfortable with. My kids are a great help as they catch and do all the back and forths while i slaughter and dress.I have to add in one last thing:during this last kill my daughter is standing there in her rubber gloves, bandana over her head and her work apron on and i am slitting the chickens and she starts talking to me about karma and reincarnation (she is studying a block on Bhuddism at school), we killed fifteen chickens that day while talking about the spiritual beliefs of the people on this planet and it was one of the most beutiful conversations i have had with my girl and it made sense for her to have it right then and there because of what we were doing and her relation to it. Life is hard here but good God it is GOOD. Bless you all...Berry

Berry, what an interesting story, bet you really did enjoy that time spent with your Daughter, that was very sweet. I liked the method of your dealing with the meat birds. Keeping that in my memory. Have a wonderful and beautiful day. Cindi

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There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold. The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold. The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee. Robert Service